Stephen Lawrence: Time For Justice Panorama

This programme contains racist In the rural Highlands of Jamaica

lies the body of a black teenager murdered by a gang of white racists

18 years ago. His name represents one of the most shameful episodes

of British race relations history. It has come to symbolise an iconic

struggle against injustice and sends a shudder through the

corridors of power. His name is Stephen Lawrence. The murder in

South London... Stephen Lawrence's family are determined to carry on

their long search... Out of the blue he was attacked and stabbed.

Stephen Lawrence's 19th birthday, his family lead a vigil... For 18

years, Doreen and Neville Lawrence have struggled to win justice for

their murdered son. The justice system is saying you can do

whatever you like to black people and we will not do anything to you.

This is a story of how an ordinary family exposed one of Britain's

biggest organisations as institutionally racist. One of the

factors in my mind was the family were black. Since 1993, the prime

suspects have treated the justice system with content. They were

laughing in our faces. They knew that was it. They had got away with

murder. Panorama has been granted exclusive access to Doreen Lawrence

and her family. The fact that somebody has been held to account

and they have gone to prison for him, that will be the closure.

follow the story of one woman's relentless fight for justice on the

day that time ran out for two of APPLAUSE

Minutes ago, Gary Dobson and David Norris have been found guilty of

the murder of Stephen Lawrence. Despite these verdicts, today is

not a cause for celebration, how can I celebrate when my son lies

buried? When I cannot see him, or speak to him, when will I see him

grow up and go to university, or get married, or have children?

it not been for the tenacity of the Lawrences and especially Doreen,

this day might never have come. But there is a private, untold story of

this woman's quest for justice. This is the story of the Stephen

Lawrence saga that you have not yet heard through the eyes of his

mother. He was the first born. I remember I wanted to have a son so

I was more than over the moon when Stephen was born. As a baby, he had

a temperament, Stephen did. That hadn't changed while he was growing

up. He was determined. He knew what he wanted. He was very creative. He

loved drawing. He took part in all the sports that happened in school.

He took part in the mini-marathon in '88. How did he do in that?

came 100 and something. The fact he finished the course was quite good.

He was like that older brother, that as a younger brother you could

never get to that level, as much as you tried, as much - it didn't

matter how hard I worked or trained, when I thought I got to a certain

place, I would look up and he would move that marker a step forward.

is hard to believe he would have been 37. I think about him all the

time. Would he have had a family? Where would he have been in his

career? Stuff like that. I still have him as being a young man.

the British public, the Stephen Lawrence story begins in South East

London on April 22nd, 1993. The events of that evening and the

aftermath would change the face of race relations in Britain. 18-year-

old Stephen Lawrence and his friend Duwayne Brooks found themselves in

Eltham trying to catch a bus home. This was an area that had already

seen three racist murders in as many years. There is a bus coming.

Can you see it coming? A gang of white youths crossed the road. One

of them shouting racist abuse. saw the first person who shouted,

"What, nigger?" He hit Steve from up above, straight down. At the

time of the blow, he did scream. I have never heard anybody scream

like that before. The attack was brief, lasting only ten seconds,

long enough to inflict two deadly stab wounds. Steve, get up. Stephen,

let's go. The word "nigger" is used at the scene. It is a sad fact that

in anything else called a racist murder people look around for other

explanations. It is a defence mechanism among white people to say,

"There must be some other explanation" or, "There must be

some qualifying factors." Here there are no qualifying factors.

They attack this young man because he's black. Everything points to

that. Stephen managed to run more than 200 yards before he collapsed.

This was a remarkable feat as the knife had severed two of his main

arteries. Steve, get up! Steve! Steve, get up! He died where he

fell on a cold pavement in Eltham in a pool of his own blood around

People talk about the knock on the door and my knock on the door

happened. We drove to the hospital. I remember as I walked in, I saw a

young man in front of me, I recognised Duwayne straightaway. I

asked him what had happened. He wasn't able to answer me. A nurse

ushered us into a room and asked us to wait there. Then we were told

that Stephen had died. It was like watching a drama, it was like he's

died, no, he's not, he can't be. Within hours, five boys would

emerge as a prime suspect and would remain so for the next 18 years.

They are Gary Dobson, David Norris, Neil Acourt, his brother, Jamie,

and Luke Knight. Over the years, they have strutted their way

through an inquest and an inquiry whilst three of them, Dobson,

Knight and Neil were acquitted of the murder. I followed the case and

in 2006 I made a programme raising new concerns about the suspects'

alibis. The case had been dormant, but a fresh review was launched

resulting in a dramatic discovery of new scientific evidence and in

2010, two of the five, David Norris and Gary Dobson, were charged with

murder. Under the double jeopardy law, Dobson cannot be tried twice

for the same crime without a special hearing at the Court of

Appeal where it must be proved that the evidence is new and compelling.

Our journey with Doreen Lawrence begins over a year ago in a

barristers' chambers in London. When they said they thought they

had more on Dobson than they did on Norris... Dobson... Doreen, her QC

and lawyer are preparing for a meeting with the Met Police and the

Crown Prosecution Service. Doreen has already been told what the new

evidence is. I will remind you what they found was Stephen's blood on

Dobson's coat and fibre... Is this new forensic evidence strong enough

to overcome the double jeopardy hurdle? DNA is a strong piece of

evidence. So when I hear that there's a link between the suspects

and the victim based upon DNA, then I think that that is - I can take

an optimistic outlook. Doreen hasn't. No surprise because of the

years of failures. They seem to be fairly confident.

To me, until the time comes when I hear the verdict where they find

them guilty, that is the only time I'm going to be able to say, "Thank

God for that" - and yes, I believe that will happen. I can't allow

myself to be there, I really can't. In her heart of hearts, she wants

this to be a success. I think if she doesn't get it, I can't imagine

what affect it would have on her. There is much at stake. Not just

for the family. For the Met, the Lawrence case has represented a

running sore on the force's reputation. They have invested

millions of pounds, they have invested everything in this. This

is their attempt at redemption and if they get it wrong, they are in

for a nasty surprise. The Met are terrified of Doreen Lawrence?

most people are! But for now, the meeting with the prosecutors has

gone well. We were very pleased they were willing to have the

meeting so Doreen could meet the people involved. And get a feeling

of their approach, the feelings that they have about the case

because Doreen has been there before. They are very confident. I

have been there before, when we have been able to say we got this

and this. It is the Court of Appeal, that will be the test. The court

has to decide in one case whether in fact it can go back for trial

before. In order to do that, they have to meet a high threshold. That

will be the next big test. Over the years, several re-investigations

have failed to crack the case. It was the first investigation which

was crucial and it was hampered by incompetence and "institutional

racism" from the outset. As Stephen lay dying in April 1993, officers

made a series of fundamental errors and assumptions which would haunt

the Met for years to come. Where's an ambulance? Call an ambulance.

Stephen's friend described a racist assault pointing out the direction

the attackers had fled. They ran up Dickson Road... The police appeared

to be focusing their suspicions on him. I was in shock. I didn't know

he had been stabbed. They were more interested in how he got those

injuries. Was it me that attacked him? Did we have a fight? Or were

we in a gang fight? Initially believing Stephen had received a

blow to the head, police failed to detect the real cause of the

emerging pool of blood - two five- inch stab wounds. Officers were as

panicked as I was. And seemed to be in shock just as I was. They were

also repelled from touching him because of the blood, like I was.

Two passers-by were Christians on their way home from a prayer

meeting. They were with Stephen during his last moments. They told

how police failed to provide any medical attention to Stephen.

was no attempt by the officers to try and stop the blood. The blood

was fairly visible? Yes. It's a sad thing to leave the world with so

much hate directed against you. I said, "You are loved." I wanted to

know that somebody cared. We tried to pray over him, "Lord heal him."

I wish I had enough faith so I could try and raise him from the

Two officers tried to take a pulse, but no first aid was administered.

By the time the paramedics arrived at 10.55pm, Stephen was already

dead. I checked all of those officers had

done first aid courses. All of them had no idea what first aid is about.

I said "What is the ABC of first aid?" They didn't even know what it

stood for. None of them touched him properly at all. They didn't do any

first aid at all. There is this confused scene and the police

inspector arrives. He would say later "takes charge". He made a

series of assumptions about what had happened for which there were

no grounds and for which the Macpherson Inquiry would later

conclude he made those sultss because Duwayne and Stephen were

REPORTER: The death of their son has left the Lawrences believing

London is cruel and hostile. The family said they didn't want

Stephen laid to rest in racist soil. The Lawrences were never able to

grieve in peace. Just days after the funeral, they received news

that the Crown Prosecution Service was dropping murder charges against

two of the suspects. But for Doreen Lawrence that would never do and

this signalled the beginning of her long battle against the police and

the judiciary. It's March 2011 and I've come to Jamaica with Doreen.

I'm hoping to learn about her upbringing, which might give me an

insight into what has driven this woman all these years. Doreen was

born as lived in the rural Highlands of Jamaica and used to

play amongst the trees here. But 1993, this quiet place took on a

new significance. It's where Stephen is buried. The Lawrences

keep its location a fiercely guarded secret, but Doreen has

You can tell by the amount of years I've been coming, the amount of

flowers that's been brought. It's always a very sad time and as his

picture's beginning to wear out, I think, I'll have to get another one

done, for him. I'll get another one done. This is a peaceful place for

Doreen, a place to reflect and quietly speak to her son. But I am

slightly taken aback when the anger she still feels rises to the

surface. I'm really pleased that I have buried him here. Because had

he been buried in the UK, his grave would have been desecrated so many

times. Nobody knows where he is. The country didn't deserve to have

his body any way. They took his life. They didn't deserve him, so...

I think it's still the best thing that we did, that we brought him

here, so he can be next to his great grandmother, so she can help

look after him. I try and talk to him in my head, I just talk to him

about how we are, what we're doing. I like to have that time that I can

talk to him. This is a side to Doreen Lawrence the public never

gets to see. Her reputation is one of an impassioned campaigner and a

formidable opponent. I wanted to know how those who knew her as a

child remembered her. We're going to meet a lady, who seems to know

me. I must have been very young. Hello. You remember me? Yes!

looked after Doreen's father until he died and has clear memories of a

young Doreen and a childhood treat that led to her nickname, icy. In

Britain that would mean that you were quite tough, as a child, is

that why she was called icy? No. I think it's something in the family

tradition. All I know that icy hard working persons. I'm definitely

that. They are kind persons. definitely that. Loving. I think

I'm that. Yes, I know. I know. been a short trip and there's just

time for a final visit to Stephen's grave. Though many years have

passed since his death, these moments do not get any easier.

like a bitter sweet moment, really. Yes, I have to get home, but at the

same time, it's saying goodbye to him again. It's always again and

again. By the time you come back here, to see Stephen again, what

would you hope to be telling him? That somebody's gone to prison for

his death. Somebody, hopefully. That's what I'd like to be able to

tell him. Do you think a positive result in this trial would give you

closure? I think where I'm concerned that he's no longer here,

that will always be there for me. But the fact that somebody's been

held to account and they're going to prison for him, that would be

Doreen knows she must put the franc wilt of Jamaica behind her and

prepare for what awaits over the coming months. The countdown to one

of the most eagerly anticipated murder trials in recent history has

begun. In 1993, Gary Dobson and David

Norris were part of the gang of five who have always been the prime

suspects for this murder. Led by Neil, the eldest of the Acourt

brothers, the gang had a fearsome reputation for carrying and using

knives. Dobson was more of a follower, if perhaps brighter than

the others. Norris was a different story, aged just 16, he was a

violent son of a drug dealing gangster.

Within 48 hours of Stephen's murder, the police received no fewer than

26 tip-offs mostly naming the same group of boys. The boys who did the

murder, they're five of them. They're nuts.... Involved in a

stabbing... They call themselves the Crays.... Despite this, no

arrests were made, not even when a police surveillance team watched

Jamie Acourt leaving his house carrying a bin liner, potentially

full of evidence, get into a car and drive away. The police wasn't

interested in Stephen. They weren't interested in catching his killers

at all. They assumed that Stephen must know his killers, that we must

be into crime and so was Stephen and suggesting that they found a

glove on Stephen, as if to say, he was into crime. It's like they're

assuming that all black families are criminals. Spring 2011. It's a

double jeopardy hearing at the High Court. Only Gary Dobson is subject

to these proceed gdz, since David Norris has never stood trial for

Stephen's murder. Everything hinges on this hearing. If the CPS cannot

persuade the three judges the new evidence meets the legal threshold,

there will be no trial at all. Doreen and Imran are preparing for

court. We're second day into, to being at the High Court. Once the

witnesses are done, the lawyers make submissions to the court as to

whether the acquittal should be overturned or not. Once that's

heard, submissions made, then we wait. If we get through and the

judges say, yes, we can go to trial, then there's a much stronger

possibility. At the same time, I'm a little bit cautious. I'm not

going to say, yeah, I'll just think, this is fantastic. We are going to

get there. Thank you very much. Another day.

Prosecuters believe they've found the evidence proving Gary Dobson

was part of the group of boys who They claim that at some point

during the attack, possibly as a knife was drawn back for a second

strike, a tiny spot of Stephen's blood became airborne. It was this

microscopic blob, measuring less than half a millimetre, which

eventually landed on the collar of Dobson's jacket and crucially,

soaked into the weave. New advanced in DNA technology enabled

scientists to prove it was Stephen's, with odds of a billion

to one that it belonged to anybody else. Clothes fibres belonging to

Stephen were also found, but it was this minute blood stain that would

form the central plank of the prosecution case. There were fibres

that had already been found. They'd been found way back in 1995 and

1993. We also followed a line of hair, human hair, that appeared to

be quite a considerable amount of human hair. As a result of that,

they realised there was a potential for blood as well. At that moment,

I think, it became very significant what we'd found. But the defence

has an explanation for all of this, contamination. They say that dried

blood fragments and fibres from Stephen's blood-stained clothes

must have escaped through degenerated seals throughout years

of scientific testing. This claim is bolstered by a litany of

examples of poor evidence handling, when various key exhibits have been

stored or even photographed together. Dobson's team insist this

fatally undermines the prosecution evidence and that it doesn't

deserve to go before a jury. But for Doreen and Imran, it's the

first they've heard of it. arrests, all the information didn't

collect the evidence. It's a catalogue of stuff. Listening to it

now, nothing much has changed. I heard it, I was shocked. It's

staggering that if you wanted to pick any case the Metropolitan

Police wanted to make sure they had dealt with properly, after all the

criticisms, this would be this one. Despite that, things were not being

kept properly. What's concerning me now is that I can hear, if this

goes to trial, how the defence are going to make hay with this and

they're going to suggest to the jury, you can't trust this, putting

legal hat on, looking at it, hopefully objectively, you'd say,

yeah, they've got over that threshold. I want to be able to say

to you, I hope I can say to you, I was right. OK, well, I hope so too.

It's Good Friday, it's also the anniversary of Stephen's death. And

whilst the family waits for the judge's decision, Stuart Lawrence

addresses a special memorial service to his brother. I'd just

like to share with you two really good memories that we both shared,

me and Stephen, every Sunday. As far back as I can remember, we used

to come to this church. I can look around and I can see memories...

the early days I questioned why wasn't God there to protect

Stephen? I had real difficulty in that, in the early days. I'd just

like to say, I'm really grateful for all the help and support you

give my family over all these years, especially my mum. And then I start

thinking that everything happens for a reason and I think all the

things that's happened since Stephen's death, even though he had

such a cruel death, it's like it was meant to be, because all the

changes happened. Hadn't Stephen died, a lot of things would never

have happened. That's the things I start thinking about whenever I'm

People say to me, well, how strong you are - I don't think I'm strong.

I think there is something there carrying me and helping me through,

so I'm not doing it on my own. If there is one thing I must say, I

don't forgive the boys who have killed Stephen. They took away

Stephen's life. There's nothing in them, in their behaviour, anything

to show that they regret what their actions have done and the pain that

Today the judges deliver their decision and the Lawrences learn

Gary Dobson will stand trial for Stephen's murder alongside David

Norris. If we get today over with, we can evaluate from there, so to

speak. Yeah, it's going to be hard. I'm not sure both individuals are

going to be in court today. I suppose I am looking forward to see

what they look like now. In the past, say ten years or so, I have

not seen so and everybody has grown up and got a bit older. Stephen was

never allowed to get older. They have got on with their lives as if

nothing has happened. It is like, "Yeah, you thought you got away

with it." With a bit of luck, we will say, "Yeah, we've got you," -

well not quite, but we are on the We go into Court 4 and we get the

decision. The prosecution are allowed to tell the family and

myself an hour before what that decision is going to be so we will

know an hour before. So we will go into court knowing the decision. If

it is a good decision, that will be an hour on cloud nine. If it is a

bad one, that hour will be a very It is the result Doreen has been

waiting for. The new evidence is strong enough to go in front of a

jury. Gary Dobson and David Norris will stand trial. It's been a long

time in coming, but we still have a long way to go. So, at this moment

in time, all I can think about is Stephen and that perhaps somewhere

down the line we will finally get justice for him. It's been a long

time for us to get to this position. Even though you hear all of it, but

is it real? After 18 years, are we going to have a trial with the CPS

saying, "We want to make something happen"? It's a bit surreal. Is

this really happening? Is this some sort of dream? Is this going to be

the start of a big hope that ends in disappointment? There will be a

trial. It is 18 years too late? Yeah. The worry is having heard

some of the evidence, which is fine at this stage, is it enough for a

trial? Doreen is no stranger to overcoming obstacles. From the

beginning, she found herself up against an establishment that

didn't want to listen. Within 48 hours of Stephen's murder, there

were already strong grounds for arrest but it took an intervention

from the world's number one humanitarian Nelson Mandela before

the police moved. It is as if they are condoning what these people are

doing. Next day, despite no significant new evidence, police

started arresting the suspects, including Dobson and Norris. But

during interviews, the boys who were all aged 16 and 17, gave

A vast array of weapons was seized but none could be proved to be the

David Norris also remained tight- Gary Dobson was much more talkative.

As well he might be. Dobson had some explaining to do. He had

already told police during their house to house enquiries he stayed

home all night. By the time of this interview the police knew otherwise.

A local youth had heard about the stabbing, put two and two together

and turned up at the Acourts' house an hour after the murder. There's

been a stabbing. You boys don't know nothing about it? Why should

we? This witness would later claim he saw Dobson, Norris and the

Acourts cleaning themselves up and acting suspiciously. He's dead.

now you've told us... Word got out this boy had spoken to the police

about what he had seen. Dobson Then Dobson repeatedly lied about

But unknown to Dobson, he had been photographed with Norris outside

the Acourts' house a week before. Many items of clothing had been

seized including a jacket from Dobson and a pair of jeans from

Norris' room but they would yield no useful forensic evidence, for

now. By the summer of 1993, the case ground to a halt. Today,

Doreen's full-time job is keeping Stephen's case in the public eye.

In a lasting memorial, she helped set up she is the director of the

Stephen Lawrence Charitable Trust in Greenwich. Tonight is about

celebrating the life of Stephen Lawrence. Doreen hates the

limelight but never shirks from being the public face of the

campaign. We are honoured to be part of the story with Doreen and

Neville and the family. Doreen and Neville divorced in 1999. Events

like these are amongst the only times they meet. These balloons are

balloons that have Stephen's name and his signature on them. We are

going to invite the family first to release their balloons... God bless

you, Stephen. Ladies and gentlemen, a toast to Stephen Lawrence. May

his name rise and rise and rise. are here to look back at what's

happened since his death and to look forward to the future and the

work of the Trust. What I'm most proud of is having this magnificent

building and the work that takes place in it, working hard to make

Stephen Lawrence' name and all the achievements to be a lasting legacy

for years to come. Thank you. APPLAUSE

I lost a loved one. I don't know if I would be able to say things that

she does, do the things she does, put a brave face on and meet

hundreds of people and all she wants to do is to stick her head

under the pillow and just grieve. I have great respect for that, huge

admiration. I can carry on with my job. Her, this is her life. I'm so

in awe of the fact she can continue At some point, I would love to be

able to say bye-bye and see the Trust support itself. It is hard. I

am just a regular mum, you know, who has lost a son and I have

campaigned. I think if from the word go had the police caught his

killers, and did what they needed to do, nobody would ever hear from

me or know who I am. I have been divorced for the past, what, 11

years. Would it be nice to be married? Probably not. Things were

probably going wrong before Stephen's death. I have had nobody

in my life since then. You can be out with loads of people and you

After the failure of the first investigation in 1993, the family

intensified the pressure on the Met and the fresh inquiry was launched

the following year. This time, detectives set about their task

with vigour and installed a tiny camera in a plug socket of Gary

Dobson's flat. The footage showed Dobson, pictured here with the

large knife, Norris and others at play and in their element. The

They behave in a way which, as evidence of racism, is shocking

almost beyond belief. Certainly almost beyond unbearing. The film

shows Neil Acourt with a knife virtually all the time. As he is

talking, he is waving the knife around, he is making stabbing

movements in the air, he is making a strange bowling movement with the

knife in a sinister way. Rereplicates the way Stephen

Lawrence is attacked. It is evidence of a violent obsession

with knives, but not evidence of murder. The investigation stalled

again. The Lawrences frustrated at yet another failure took matter

into their own hands and in 1996 brought a private prosecution.

NEWSREEL: The parents of Stephen Lawrence arrive at the Old Bailey...

The charges were laid against Gary Dobson, Luke Knight and Neil Acourt

but the case rested on Duwayne Brooks who had picked out Acourt

and Knight in an ID parade. But his evidence was ruled inadmissible.

don't think what's happened today is fair comment. My wife is not

here today. I remember collapsing when I went home and they would get

a doctor to see me. I think that is probably one of the first times I

have seen a doctor since Stephen's death. I have been holding myself

for so long that I kept myself going and that was probably the

last straw and it affected me quite badly. Three of the suspects,

including Dobson, walked free from court. Because of the way the law

stood at the time, they believed In a store room at the back of the

Trust, Doreen is taking me through a box of Stephen's belongings. Who

is that? He was the one... I can see that despite the public profile,

Doreen guards closely her private memories of him. These are some

pictures that are of him growing up. I didn't like the idea of too many

photos of Stephen being out. I just think that everybody just seems to

want to have photos of him. I think no. The one is enough. This is his

cap from the Cubs and the Scouts. He got his bronze and silver badge,

he didn't quite get his gold. This is just his work. Then when I look

at the date of when he did that, he did it on April 7, 15 days before

he died, when he did that. When you say you can't read it? No, I can't

read it. No. Why not? I find it difficult. When I look at what he

could achieve and, it's his work here, no, I'm not ready to read

this yet. Not ready to read this yet. In the early days I know there

was days when I would lock myself in my room. I didn't come out. That

was really a dark place. I know once you're in there, it's very

difficult to take yourself back out. I'm always worried about allowing

myself to go back there. With just two months until the trial,

Doreen's decided to have a family barbeque. It's a rare opportunity

to see her and Stuart relaxing. It's a good way to get the family

together, to spend some time together, socialising, you know.

That's stressful times and stuff. I hope they're prosecuted for my mum.

It would put this to rest and her to move on. That's the most

important thing to me really. have you got for your old auntie,

darling? Doreen's sister has been a crucial pillar of support

throughout the years. She didn't ask for this. This is not the life

she planned for herself. I think from the 2 2nd April 1993, her

world became dark. I'm hoping by the end of the year, there will be

a light. What we need is justice. I don't think she'll stop until she

hears "guilty". It was the Lawrence family's relentless search for

answers which eventually forced the full public inquiry in 1998

REPORTER: Doreen Lawrence has been highly critical of the police

investigation into her son's death. The Macpherson Inquiry would become

the water shed moment in British race relations history. It exposed

the Met and in particular its first investigation into Stephen's murder

as institutionally racist. I think she went through the inquiry almost

saying "I told you so. I told you so." Look, this is what was

happening and I knew it all along. The crucial thing about the

institutional racism, is that there was a collective failure of the

police, as we call it, a collective failure. Almost every decision that

should have been made didn't get made. If it did get made, there

aren't records of it. If it was made, the decision was wrong.

William Macpherson called for a complete overhaul of police

training and crucially a change in the double jeopardy law, which

eventually led to the current prosecution. But the inquiry would

be remembered as much for its damning verdict of the met as it

would for the scenes outside after the five suspects had finished

their evidence and revealed very little once again. They were just

laughing in our faces. They knew that was it. They'd got away with

murder. People just had enough of them and was pelting them with all

sorts of fruit, bottles and all sorts of things thrown at them. But

they came across as exactly the type of person that they are, evil,

It's the first day of the trial, the day she's been waiting for for

18 years and I had, perhaps naively, expected Doreen and Stuart to be

more upbeat. Just numb at the moment. The media attention is

going to be even more intense than ever. It's like something new, you

know, it may be going on for 18 years, but it's still something new.

Listening to the news this morning, you know, it's so clinical, how the

reporters, how they talk about it. It's just a matter of fact. It's a

statement. It's emotional involvement for me. Most of the

stuff is resting on contamination. What the prosecution is saying for

us is that they are ready for that, they have answers for it. Dare I

say if we meet in five weeks' time, I think we'll have a conviction.

What do they say, the proof of the pudding is in the eating? Until

that happens, nobody can be certain. Are you ready? If there's such a

thing as being ready. Just put one foot in front of the other really,

as I've been doing for the past 18 In the following weeks the

Lawrences would hear testimony from dozens of police and forensic

witnesses. And for the first time, the case against David Norris was

revealed. On a sweatshirt found in his bedroom, during the original

search of his house, there were six fibres that matched Stephen's

trousers. Also, a fibre that matched Stephen's polo shirt. On

his jeans, there was found amongst the debris on the surface, two very,

very small fragments of hair. And mitochondrial DNA of that hair

matches Stephen Lawrence and his maternal relatives. Norris would

tell the jury the garments didn't belong to him. Dobson said he

hadn't worn the key jacket for years before the murder. Dobson's

defence meant a stinging attack on the principal evidence, the blood

stain on the jacket collar. They claim that one of these dried blood

fragments from Stephen found their way to Dobson's jacket through

cross-contamination. When scientists tested the jacket for

traces of saliva, they sprayed it with water before covering it with

a paper sheet and wait to squeeze them together. It's during this

process, they say, that one of Stephen's blood flakes became

liquid again and soaked into the fabric. The defence didn't offer

any scientific experts of their own. But the lead prosecution scientist

carried out a series of tests to see if this saliva examination

could explain the blood stain. During our experimentation we were

never able to replicate the stain on the collar using dried flakes of

blood from Stephen Lawrence or from the blood from the packaging. The

nature and appearance of that stain indicated that it was the result of

wet blood landing on that garment. And it was not the result of the

testing that had been conducted subsequently on the item. One of

the explanations for the stain was that the wearer of that jacket was

at the scene of the attack? Yes. But the jury was told how a

comprehensive police review of the handling of each exhibit over the

past 18 years exposed a series of contamination plunders. Given that

this is one of the most High profile, unsolved murders in

Britain, never mind in the Met, wouldn't the Lawrences be entitled

to expect that these exhibits would have been better looked after?

I think that they were things I wish were better, but they didn't

affect the evidence that we've placed before the court. I'm not a

scientist. I go to scientists and had they have said to me, well,

that is a disaster. Then I would have, my heart would have sank. But

at no stage did we get that. Four weeks into the trial, after intense

legal debate, a jury was shown the police surveillance video for the

very first time, 17 years after it Both defendants took to the stand

to denounce their extreme racism and proclaim their innocence.

Alibis were offered. Stephen and Pauline Dobson swore their son was

at home at the time of the murder, as did Norris's mother. The

defendants' fate is now in the hands of the jury, which, after six

weeks of evidence, is sent out to After deliberating for more than

eight-and-a-half hours, the jury has finally returned its verdict,

Gary Dobson and David Norris have been found guilty of the murder of

Stephen Lawrence. They now face prison. For the Lawrences, after a

wait of more than 18 years, justice has finally been delivered.

In her only post verdict television interview, Doreen told me of her

relief. Just so numb. I think when the, when we were told that the

jury was, the verdict was in, all of a sudden you just feel gosh,

panic, whereas before, even though I was sort of really holding myself,

it seems to have just got even tighter still. So when they said

that you know, you just feel something inside like snap, to say

thank God. When it's both of them, that's even more. You were very

emotional in court. Was it like an outpouring of 18 years of... Grief.

Some part of that I feel that it's just releasing some of the stress

and strain that's been happening, that's been building up for the

past 18 years. It's not all out. I just think I'm still, you know, am

I going to keep pinching myself to say that they've actually been

found guilty? I think it will take a little while to sink in.

Doreen Lawrence this verdict may represent a chance for closure. For

the Met and for Britain, the legacy of Stephen Lawrence will endure.

This case is extraordinary, which has had more impact on policing

than any other single case I can think of in modern times and

possibly in the history of the met. The way we approach homicide

investigations is utterly changed. The way we approach working with

families and with communities is completely changed. The face of the

met has changed. I meet many people in my work, and the one thing they

all say is what a fantastic job the Lawrences have done. That's white

people as well as black people. It's not necessarily just about

black and white. It's about whatever background you're from, it

means you can't get away with doing the things that you did before.

Even after all this time, the name of Stephen Lawrence is instantly

recognised and even among people who weren't alive when he was

killed, the name alone is a key to a whole series of issues and

thoughts, positive ideas about Britain and race. If that's Stephen

Lawrence's legacy, it's a very fine one. We should be very grateful to

him. Stephen's name will go down in

history for all sorts of things. That's a positive. I'd rather have

my son here than having his name attached to a legacy. Gary Dobson

and David Norris are now convicted of the murder of Stephen Lawrence.